what does ‘grace’ mean?

To me it means ‘unmerited favour’. So God gives us unconditional love – despite all we do to him and each other.

God’s grace responds to hopeless situations. It responded to mine, and it will to yours.

The well known parable of the Prodigal Son, Luke 15:11 is traditionally understood by most Christians as containing the teachings of Jesus on grace. A son demands the family fortune and wastes it, then returns home expecting little in the way of good treatment. The father welcomes him handsomely and unconditionally, over the objections of his other son who stayed at home and served dutifully. The son did nothing to deserve his fathers love, but received it anyway.

Wikipedia says: “In Christianity, divine grace refers to the sovereign favour of God for humankind — especially in regard to salvation — irrespective of actions (“deeds”), earned worth, or proven goodness.” Bit of a mouthful…and not to be memorised.

Side Note: on wikipedia there’s a bit of a discussion on what grace is. Summary: lots of different views – and if christians cant agree on what it is – how are we to explain it to non-christians??